Related papers: The Novel Obscured State of Stellar-mass Black Hol…

A black hole spectrum is known to change from the hard state to the soft state when the energy spectral index $\alpha$ ($F_E \propto E^{-\alpha}$) in, say, 2-20 keV range changes from $\alpha \sim 0.5$ to $\sim 1.5$. However, this…

Using the Very Long Baseline Array, we have measured a trigonometric parallax for the micro quasar GRS 1915+105, which contains a black hole and a K-giant companion. This yields a direct distance estimate of 8.6 (+2.0,-1.6) kpc and a…

We report on XMM-Newton observations of GRO J1655-40 and GRS 1009-45, which are two black hole X-ray transients currently in their quiescent phase. GRO J1655-40 was detected with a 0.5 - 10 keV luminosity of 5.9 10^{31} erg/s. This…

Isolated black holes in our Galaxy have eluded detection so far. We present here a comprehensive study on the detectability of isolated stellar-mass astrophysical black holes that accrete interstellar gas from molecular clouds in both the…

GRS 1915+105 was observed by BeppoSAX for about 10 days in October 2000. For about 80% of the time, the source was in the variability class $\rho$, characterised by a series of recurrent bursts. We describe the results of the timing…

We present the spectral and timing analysis of X-ray observations performed on the Galactic black hole transient GRS 1716-249 during the 2016-2017 outburst. The source was almost continuously observed with the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory…

Since the launch of INTEGRAL in late 2002 we have monitored the Galactic microquasar GRS 1915+105 with long exposures (~100 ks) pointings. All the observations have been conducted simultaneously with other instruments, in particular RXTE…

We present the results from simultaneous Chandra HETGS and RXTE observations of the microquasar GRS 1915+105 in its quasi-stable "soft state" (or State A) performed on 2007 August 14, several days after the state transition from "hard…

Since its outburst in 1997 GS 135-64 stayed in quiescence. In June 2015 renewed activity of GS 1354-64 was observed. Based on our analysis of energy spectra and timing properties obtained from Swift/XRT monitoring data we found that GS…

Black holes, both supermassive and stellar-mass, impact the evolution of their surroundings on a large range of scales. While the role of supermassive black holes is well studied, the effects of stellar-mass black holes on their…

We discuss the observational consequences of black hole spin in X-ray binaries within the framework of the standard thin accretion disk model. When compared to theoretical flux distribution from the surface of a thin disk surrounding a Kerr…

This review summarizes the observational constraints on the mass spectrum of compact objects in X-ray binaries. We currently have 20 X-ray binaries with confirmed black holes, based on dynamical information (i.e. mass in excess of 3 Msun).…

We report preliminary results of mid-infrared (MIR) and X-ray observations of GRS 1915+105 that we carried out between 2004 October 2 and 2006 June 5. Our main goals were to study its variability, to detect the presence of dust, and to…

We performed a detailed time-resolved spectral study of GRS 1915+105 during its low-flux rebrightening phase using the broadband capabilities of AstroSat and NuSTAR in May-June 2019. The AstroSat light curves revealed erratic X-ray flares…

BeppoSAX observed GRS 1915+105 on October 2000 with a long pointing lasting about ten days. During this observation, the source was mainly in the rho class characterized by bursts with a recurrence time of between 40 and 100 s. We identify…

The Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) has made feasible for the first time the search for high-frequency (~ 100 Hz) periodic features in black hole candidate (BHC) systems. Such a feature, with a 67 Hz frequency, recently has been…

We present the results of the timing analysis of five Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer observations of the Black Hole Candidate GRS 1915+105 between 1996 September and 1997 December. The aim was to investigate the possible presence of a type-B…

GRS 1915+105 is being observed as part of an Open Time monitoring program with INTEGRAL. Three out of six observations from the monitoring program are presented here, in addition to data obtained through an exchange with other observers. We…

We present the results of a detailed analysis of RXTE observations of class $\omega$ which show an unusual state transition between high-soft and low-soft states in the microquasar GRS 1915+105. Out of about 600 pointed RXTE observations,…

The evidence for obscured AGN and in particular for obscured quasars is discussed. The spectrum and source modelling of the X-ray Background suggests that most massive black holes grow by obscured accretion. A possible major growth phase…